Online Desk  :   The government has reduced import duties on fresh fruits to keep prices affordable during the holy month of Ramadan. National Board of Revenue (NBR) confirmed this in a press release on Tuesday. The supplementary duty at the import stage has been lowered from 30 per cent to 25 per cent, while the 5 per cent advance tax has been completely exempted, it said. Additionally, a separate notification on March 10 reduced the advance income tax on fruit imports from 10 per cent to 5 per cent, bringing the total reduction in customs duties to 15 per cent.

The NBR claimed that, in the larger public interest, the interim government had provided significant tax exemptions on import duty, regulatory duty, VAT, advance income tax, and advance tax on various essential commodities, including edible oil, sugar, potatoes, eggs, onions, rice, dates, and pesticides, over the past few months. “Due to various timely steps taken by the government, including tax exemptions, it has been possible to keep the prices of goods at a tolerable level during the holy month of Ramadan this year,” said the release.

The government had completely exempted the existing VAT on the metro rail service, a widely used public transport, in the larger public interest, said the release. To ensure easy access to books, promote a modern, technology-based education system, and enhance education quality, VAT had also been exempted on e-book services at both the local supply and import levels.